Self-contained window cleaning implement



Feb. 24, 1.943.v

E. R. SENSENBACH ETAL SELF-CONTAINED WINDOW CLEANING IMPLEMENT Filed March 2s, 1945 24/- if' a 1N VEN TORS l Patented Feb. 24,1948

SELF-'CONTAINED WINDOW cLEANmG' IMPLEMENT Elmo Richard Sensenbach and Everett E. Shaver, n Los Angeles, Calif., assgnors to Wizard Mfg.

Co., Inc., a corporation of California Application March 23, 1945, Serial No. 584,268

1 claim. (C1. 15-126) Our invention relates to improvements in clean-.- ing implements and more particularly to a selfcontained cleaning implement assembly of that type which is employed for simultaneously washing, scrubbing and wiping panes of glass and other surfaces. The primary object of our improvement is the production of a hand operative self-contained unit by the` use of which window panes and other surfaces can be thoroughly cleanedin a quick and less laborious manner than heretofore and with little or no waste of water or other liquid which is used for cleaning. Among further objects is the production of a device of its kind which assures a more thorough job of cleaning by the use of a minimum amount of water 'or other cleaning liquid; A still further object is the production of a self-contained article of its kind which is simple and strong in construction and the parts of which can be easily and quickly disassembled for packing and storage or quickly reassembled for use, without the use of tools.

To these ends our invention comprises the features of construction and combination oi parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of our improved cleaning implement when the parts are assembled; Fig. 2 is another side elevation taken at right angle to the position from which the view in Fig. l is depicted; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

In the drawing, A is a vertical tubular liquid supply container which acts as a reservoir for holding washing liquid and as a handle for the entire device so thatthe latter can be easily manipulated by one hand of an operator in use. The lower end of this container is seated permanently in a stability base Il) and its upper end is sealed closed by an adapter Il which is removablyA attached by a bayonet lock joint I2. f The stability base is of suicient area to sustain the container A in vertical position on any suitable support whenever desired.

The liquid supply container is provided on its side with an integral vertical pump cylinder B, the lower end of which is seated in the base I and connected by the passage I3 with the lower end of said liquid supply container. The pump cylinder has a suitable reciprocable pump unit C. to be hereinafter described, by which washing liquid such as water or any other suitable liquid supplied bythe container is sprayed by the operator in the manner hereinafter described upon the surface which is being cleaned by the device.

l 2. The stability base III serves toretain the .cleaning implement assembly' in upright position when placed on any suitable support. 1

A suitable combined brush and wiper 4holder D is mounted as an integral part of the adapter II on ithe liquidY supplyv container A. This brush and wiper holder las shown resembles a compara'- tively thin horizontal rectangular plate having a pair of opposite longitudinal parallel edges I4 and I5. Suitable bristles of a brush 1E are seated and secured in the edge I4 and the inner edge of a flexiblewiper F is seated and secured in the edge I5. The brush maybe of any suitable form and composed of any suitable material for scrubbing the surface to be cleaned and the wiper may be of any suitable form and composed of a strip of rubber or any suitable flexible material having a straight edge such as the bead I6 for effectively wiping and thus drying window panes or other surfaces which are cleaned.

The pump by which cleaning liquid supplied by container A is sprayed upon the surface which ls being cleaned has an inner cylindrical casing I1, which is inserted and held by a threaded connection IB in the upper portion of the pump cylinder. The lower end of the inner casing tapers inwardly and downwardly to form a valve seat I9 which is normally closed by the ball check valve 20. The lower extremity of the tapering end below the valve seat is connected downwardly with the lower end of the pump cylinder. by the tube 2|. A plunger 22 is reciprocably disposed in the upper portion of the cylindrical casing and has a stem 23 of suitable length upon the upper end of whichis a iinger or thumb engaging actuator 24. The lower end of the plunger is connected by the duct 25 with the pump chamber. This duct extends upwardly through the stem and terminates in an orice26 in the side of the actuator 24, through whichatomized liquid is sprayed laterally by the pump when the plunger is forced downwardly. The size of duct 25 is small as compared with the size ofv the passage upwardly through the tube 2l so that when the plunger is reciprocated upwardly liquid is drawn by negative pressure into the pump'chamber within the cylindrical casing I'I.' Also a small amount of air is drawn downwardly through orice 26 into the pump chamber when the plunger is reciprocated downwardly, which tends to atomze and mix with the liquid andgform a spray which is ejected from the orifice when the plunger i-s depressed. A helical expansion spring 21 which is interposed between the lower end of the plunger 22 and the check valve 2D serves the double function of tending to retain the check valve 20 closed upon its seat and of returning the plunger to the upper end of its suction stroke automatically. A flexible washer 29 which is retained by the spring 21 on the lower end of the plunger serves to assist in producing a ieakproof reciprocable joint between t'h ifplungeriniwall"kfa E'i'ije 'cylindiical casing H.

In this manner the spray orifice 26 is situated immediately below and in close proximity to the brush and wiper so that as the -brushor .wiper isreciprocably applied to the surfaces whichrare being cleaned, cleaning liquid may be sprayed by the manual operation of the-pump'uponfsurfaces which are being cleaned. The plunger is freely revoluble in the pump chamber so thattheabtuator may be directed with its'oriice either `ahead of the brush or ahead of the wiper while these elements are applied to panes or othersurf'aces which are being cleaned. The entire device constitutes "fa Vself#contaiifie'd asseinbiy -iwhie'n enables highly eirective eperatinlof the devi'cerfo'r vcleaning window panes nilfotherfsuifaces iwherevei and `whenever file'sireni 1 rneneviee is adapted to 'techar-ged witheleanng iiuid water or otherV u'id by disbnnting adapter -`I 'I ifroxn thev tubular :supply no'ntairr' in; D'iscnnnection o'f Athe combi-ned' biISh-ifidfwiperfholder D' enblesfthe devie'lto be lannireinentiy disassembled 'and stored in 'a' eniihii'nun space4 until used. plniii'ger Afreely"'reveiulrlle in 'the pump charnber "so tirati-th iactatormay be Vdirected 'with' its-ericefeitheraiieadeiitliebrush or 'ahead pif-the 'Wiper as=-iiesired :while thesevelements `are lampliati to panes ore-other surfaces which *are fait 1,'781it'506` being eleaned'. 1

In accordance with` the patent statutes, we have described the principles of operation of our lnvention together with the construction thereof which we now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof, but We desire to have it understood that the construction shown is only illustrative k*and that the invention can be carried out by other 'means'ra'nd applied to usesother than those above set forth within the spirit thereof and within the scope of the following claim.

We claim: l e

'In a selfco'nta'ined cleaning implement, having a reservoir, a cleaning element fixed on said reservoir, a pumping-element connected with said .reservoirHarding -atubular plunger and a manually engageable actuator, said actuator having an orifice "connectedwith said plunger in close proximity tosaid cleaning element and said plunger being freely rotatable in said pumping element to permit directing a spray from said orice on a surface to which -the"-cleaning element is simultaneously applied.`

`ELNI RICHARD" SENSENBACH. EVE'RETT E; vREFERI'INCES 'CITED 4'-Ilfli'e following reierencesare of record in the iile yof this patent:V 'UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Iilaine'V Date 496,128 :Dixonfe'tal: ,.-wn July 2, 1889 V1,535,304 G'erdin r..... ,Apr. 28, 1925 .Homillerf. Dec. 2, 1930 

